


always be my baby

by jen0ffee



Series: my answer is you [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Books, Bookstores, Fluff, Idol Lee Jeno, M/M, donghyuck is clueless, rated teen for some cursings, side markren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:15:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26300017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jen0ffee/pseuds/jen0ffee
Summary: hey donghyuck,i think there’s something wrong with my eyesbcs i cant seem to take them off your cute facejeno, xx-xxx xxxxps: check the paper at the pen standDonghyuck Lee, a bookworm slash resident bookstore worker with no knowledge of pop culture, meets Jeno Lee, an idol.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Lee Jeno
Series: my answer is you [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2156454
Comments: 5
Kudos: 107
Collections: NOHYUCK FEST: 정답!





	always be my baby

**Author's Note:**

> for nohyuck fest prompt #JD011 !!
> 
> so my initial plan was about... 4k? and it turned out to be 12k instead, so.... ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ hope i did ur prompt justice @ prompter. this was very fun to write!! huge thank you to [ayumi](https://twitter.com/absolutehaechan?s=20) and [genie](https://twitter.com/jeanheir?s=20) for helping me beta this. i hope you enjoy it!

Donghyuck was satisfied with his life at the moment. He loves the way everything seems put in place, and he can spend his days doing things he truly enjoys. He especially loves his job, working at a bookstore at the corner of the street.

He still remembers passing by the bookstore on his way to school, thinking back to the words from a passerby living in the area who said the store has been there for almost a decade, still standing strong despite the surrounding shops developing with the new housing complex opening just a few years back to accommodate to the people finding residence in the area.

Donghyuck is one of those people, who came by 4 years ago with his family and the housing agent to check out the houses, one that’s not 3 hours away from his father’s workplace. He was reluctant to the idea of moving since he had to leave his friends and childhood behind, but before he knew it, he was already opening his heart up to the new place. 

It was during his second year of high school, when Donghyuck first visited the bookstore with his classmate in search of a book that was released recently, a continuation of the series he was hooked onto. He had a hunch that the book is probably sold out at the mall, plus he grew curious about the grandpa who opens up the store every single morning as Donghyuck cycles by. 

Surprisingly, he finds the book he was searching for, along with a place he could feel the most comfortable at (other than his house) in the area. Oh, and he got close to the grandpa who runs the shop, Mr. Park.

“Good morning, Mr. Park,” Donghyuck greets with a bright smile, placing his coat on the coat hanger. The old man was sitting at the counter with a basket full of an assortment of pastries, made by his wife this morning. It’s the red checkered cloth lining the basket that had Donghyuck so sure of it.

“Good morning, Donghyuck. Have you had breakfast yet?” Mr. Park asks, taking out a blueberry Danish from the basket and placing it on a platter. “Here, my wife made your favourite.”

Donghyuck reaches for the plate, thanking Mr. Park before making his way to the table. “It’s nice to have aunty’s pastries in the morning, when they’re still warm.”

With the winter break starting just a week before, Donghyuck can work at the store full time now, unlike the days when he would be rushing to work after classes and profusely apologising to Mr. Park for the many times he was late, despite the owner of the store not really minding. It was the worst when he had just started college, not having a clue on how to juggle studies and work at the same time. Mr. Park almost made him quit and told him to focus on getting used to college life and organising his schedule properly.

“Well, you’ll be having them freshly baked every morning for a while,” Mr. Park says, resuming his reading of the newspaper. Donghyuck quickly finishes his food, tossing the plate into the sink. The place was a cafe before it was a bookstore, and Mr. Park never really changed the layout of the place when he opened it ages ago, thus the little pantry they have, where they display the snacks and drinks to be sold to the customers.

After spending some time wiping the surfaces and dusting the bookshelves, he turns the sign on the door so it shows ‘OPEN’ from the outside. Mr. Park gathers his things, patting Donghyuck on the back when the door is already being pushed open and a familiar figure enters the shop with a small smile.

“Morning, Mark. Right on time, as usual,” Mr. Park greets.

“Good morning, Mr. Park. Need to get my brain working, the words aren’t gonna write themselves,” Mark says, a hand holding the strap of the gym bag hanging off of his shoulder. Every day, at 8 am sharp, Mark will walk into the store as Mr. Park leaves, looking fresh out of the gym’s showers. “Hey, Donghyuck.”

Donghyuck nods in return. “The usual?”

Mark hums, taking his place at the table where Donghyuck sat to eat. It’s near the counter, right beside the store window where the morning sun shines through the glass, basking the area in a warm light. Donghyuck gets started on the mug of coffee, Mark’s preference embedded into his mind—a teaspoon of sugar only.

“Is Renjun coming today?” Donghyuck asks, placing a coaster and the mug on the table.

“Maybe a bit later. He stayed up until late finishing that book you gave him last week. I should’ve never let him buy it,” Mark pulls out his notebook, one of many that are filled with scribbles of ideas; horribly written words that come and go as they please. “Got any interesting stories?”

Donghyuck takes a seat in front of Mark, thinking back to his weekend. Mark gets his ideas mainly from the random thoughts that come to mind while he’s doing random things. But he also gets his inspiration from people’s stories, relating real life incidents into his songs.

“Nothing much happened. I got chased by a wild dog on Saturday though.”

Mark chuckles. “What did you even do to be chased by a dog?”

“Nothing! I was feeding the strays near the hair salon, and I guess it got jealous,” Donghyuck huffs. Mark looks down at his book with a snicker, still finding Donghyuck’s story absurd. Donghyuck pouts, leaving the table to make milk tea for himself.

After making his drink, Donghyuck takes a book out from his bag, taking a seat in front of Mark. There’s rarely any customers other than Mark at this time, far too early for people to be visiting a bookstore. Donghyuck spends most of his time reading old books that are put up for rent, refusing to study with the excuse of being on holiday. It’s almost an hour later, when a tired looking boy enters the store, wiping his fogged up glasses.

“Renjun!” Donghyuck gets up, slipping his bookmark between the pages and placing the book on the table. Renjun greets him with a smile, opening his arms for a hug from Donghyuck. Donghyuck likes hugging Renjun, just because he’s a tad bit smaller than himself, and he fits just right in his arms.

“Hey, Hyuck,” Renjun says through a yawn, patting Donghyuck on the back. He shoves his hand down his pocket after they part, handing Donghyuck a 1,000 won bill. “Can I have my tea, please?”

“Jasmine? Chamomile? We just restocked the chrysanthemum.” Donghyuck heads towards the pantry, already reaching for the mug that he usually reserves for Renjun because it can hold the right amount of water for his tea. 

“Ooh,” Renjun plops down right beside Mark, dropping his head on the older’s shoulder. “Chrysanthemum, please.”

“Good sleep?” Donghyuck hears Mark ask, earning a grunt from the other boy. 

“Asshole,” Renjun says, but there’s no trace of malice. “Curse you for leaving the bedroom door open. The little demon got in and jumped all over me.”

The little demon is their puppy, a baby golden retriever they recently adopted, that Renjun despises. Though Donghyuck knows that the countless pictures of Mark and the puppy in his phone say otherwise. He’s seen Renjun’s home screen wallpaper, a cute picture of Mark and their puppy sleeping on their couch.

Mark fixes his posture, allowing Renjun to get more comfortable on his shoulder. He tells the younger to take a nap if he’s still tired, but Renjun mumbles something about how long he’s been craving chrysanthemum tea. Donghyuck joins them at the table with Renjun's drink, smiling to himself at the view in front of him.

“How is it?”

Donghyuck hums giddily, mouth stuffed full with the meat pie Jaemin had just made just before coming to the bookstore. “It’s really good!”

Jaemin squeals, howling as he does a weird ceremonial dance, urging Donghyuck to eat more of the pie. Donghyuck recommended a pie recipe book to him just two weeks prior, filled with step-by-step recipes and techniques to master pie making.

The idea stemmed from Jaemin’s story of enjoying the meat pie his childhood neighbour had given him when she’d just moved in after seeing a customer that looked like her. Donghyuck loved the way Jaemin’s face lit up when Donghyuck gave him the book (one that he hasn’t read already, which is impossible to find), he could almost see the gears in his head working to construct a pie plan.

“I was contemplating whether I should send this to my mom, but I think she’s doing some kind of vegan challenge,” Jaemin shows him a picture on her Instagram, of a meal at a famous overpriced vegan restaurant in the middle of Itaewon. The caption says #30DaysVegan with a bunch of other hashtags to describe the photo.

“You can make a veggie pie for her,” Donghyuck suggests, watching as Jaemin pulls the cookbook out and flips through the pages, stopping at one he finds interesting. He slips a bookmark that Donghyuck made for him (because he’s the type to fold the corner of a page to mark it, which Donghyuck cringes at) between the pages and hums contently. 

Jaemin runs a hand through his hair, leaning back against the chair as he stares happily at Donghyuck finishing up the big slice he served him minutes ago. Jaemin loves dying his hair, and it’s usually bright colours that he somehow can pull off despite being such an ugly colour. His hair is brown now, after impulsively dying it an electric blue just a few weeks prior, more muted and less eye-catching.

“Thank you for the free lunch, Jaem,” Donghyuck says through a mouthful of pie, receiving a smug look from Jaemin, one that says ‘I’m the best, aren’t I?’. The bell at the door rings, signalling the entrance of a customer. Donghyuck quickly swallows down his bite, nearly choking on the pieces of meat he barely had time to chew.

A man dressed in black from head to toe enters the shop, looking left and right before landing his eyes on Donghyuck. He had a mask covering his face, sunglasses and a cap that goes down to his eyes, face completely covered from being seen. Donghyuck wonders if it’s a bad guy, planning to rob the store but his doubts are cleared when the man pulls off his face mask and sunglasses.

“Good day, sir. How can I help you?” Donghyuck flashes his business smile, hand already reaching out to help hang the man’s coat, but the other just waves him off and bows awkwardly. 

“I’m just- I’m just gonna look around,” the man stutters, making his way deeper into the store to the back part.

Donghyuck looks over to Jaemin, but the younger only shrugs at Donghyuck’s frown. He decides to leave the man by himself, quickly filling up a glass with water to clear his throat of the meat pie he rushingly swallowed before.

A few minutes pass without even a peek from the man, making Donghyuck grow wary of him. Did he go out through the back door? Did he trip and fall unconscious? Donghyuck catches a glimpse of the man’s figure walking towards the shelf with the ‘Young Adults’ label at the top, looking lost as he scans through the rows and rows of novels.

Donghyuck decides to approach the man, holding his hands behind his back. “Do you have anything in mind?”

“Not really,” he answers, eyes trained on the books instead of looking at Donghyuck.

Donghyuck hums. “Can I help you? I have a pretty good taste in books.”

The man lets out a confused noise, turning to glance at Donghyuck with a weird look on his face. Donghyuck waits for his answer, tilting his head a little with the smile still on his lips. The man clears his throat and turns away, muttering a hesitant ‘sure’.

“I personally like fairytale themed novels. If you want to get hooked up with a series, we still have the complete set of The Land Of Stories. Or perhaps you want more romance, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before have been selling like crazy amongst the teenage girls these days, there’s only one left on the shelf. What genre do you like?

The man stays silent, deep in thought before he shrugs. “I don’t really read books.”

“Do you want my recommendations then?”

“Please.”

Donghyuck walks a few steps to his right, tip-toeing to reach a certain book at one of the top shelves. He eyes the book, making sure he got the right one before handing the book to the man. “The owner once told me, you can never go wrong with classics.”

The book was Emma by Jane Austen, a book Donghyuck read back in middle school, finding the book stashed away with his mother’s collection of novels while doing their spring cleaning. Donghyuck remembered having a hard time understanding the sentences, repeating the same line over and over. But it’s also the book that got him into reading, the reason the shelf in his room started to have more books instead of the figurines he used to collect.

The man flips through the book, skimming through the pages. He taps the book against his hand, looking up at Donghyuck, a sly smile toying on his face. “Can I get a refund if it’s not good?”

“Sorry, sir. We don’t provide that kind of service here,” Donghyuck says as he fixes the books that were sticking out on the shelves.

“I’m joking. I’ll get this one.”

When they walk back to the counter, Donghyuck sees Jisung, Mr. Park’s grandchild, entering the store, bundled up in a thick scarf that his grandmother knitted for him. Donghyuck casts a glance at the clock, and it shows it’s the time Jisung usually comes from the dance studio after a dance session with his group of friends. 

Donghyuck offers a small wave at the younger as a greeting, but he only gets a pair of squinted eyes staring at the man over the counter. He suppresses a frown, swiping the man’s card and handing him the receipt. “Thank you, sir. Please come again.”

“I’ll come back when I’m done with this, Donghyuck-ssi,” the man waves the book at Donghyuck before leaving the store, slipping his mask and sunglasses back onto his face on his way out.

“Oh my god!” Jisung suddenly exclaims, running towards Donghyuck. “Oh my god, hyung, that was Jeno Lee! You got recognised by _the_ Jeno Lee!”

Donghyuck’s face contorts into a look of confusion, racking his brain to think of anyone he knows whose name is Jeno Lee. He’s sure he would remember anyone with such a unique Korean name. 

“NCT’s Jeno! He’s the rapper and main dancer of the group,” Jisung explains, pulling out his phone and shoving in his face a picture of the man Donghyuck vaguely recognises as the man from before. “He’s known for his rap and dancing, I literally covered one of his songs for my school festival performance.”

“Jisung-ah, Donghyuck knows nothing about celebrities. His Instagram is empty and he might as well not have a Twitter account with how rarely he uses it,” Jaemin comments, ignoring the whining coming from the young boy. 

Donghyuck wants to refute that statement, but it’s actually true. He’s oblivious to the entertainment industry, preferring entertainment in the form of books to tv shows and celebrities. The only celebrities he knows are Michael Jackson, from listening to his records from a young age because of his father, and some Western artists that pop up in his recommended Spotify playlist. 

“He could’ve gone to the mall, it’s five minutes away from here by car.”

“It’s Jeno Lee, he can go shop at whichever bookstore that he prefers.”

“Sung, this is literally your own grandpa’s store.”

“Who cares,” Jisung sticks his tongue out at Jaemin. “I should’ve asked for his signature. Oh my God, hyung, _you_ should’ve asked for his signature.”

“I don’t even know him?” Donghyuck frowns at Jisung, still confused about the whole Jeno and NCT thing that he’d just heard from the younger boy.

“You’re hopeless, hyung. Hopeless. Come here, I’ll show you who he is.” Jisung pulls out his phone, tapping away to show his Twitter account, completely filled with tweets about famous dancers, some teen memes that Donghyuck can’t comprehend and an unnecessary amount of videos featuring Jeno licking his lips during a performance.

A few days later, the man comes by again. Donghyuck only recognises him after he takes off his colourful ensemble, similar to people in the bustling streets of fashionable Dongdaemun during Seoul Fashion Week.

“Back so soon, sir?”

“I’m just- I need- a pen. I need a pen! Yes, a pen,” Jeno, as Jisung had taught Donghyuck along with the name of the other members of the group (Donghyuck can barely remember three of them), stammers. “I’m sorry, I haven't even opened the book.”

“It’s alright, we all have our own pace,” Donghyuck says. “Can I know what pen you need?”

“I don’t actually know...” Jeno trails off. “I guess a pen for my fan sign event?”

“Shouldn’t your company prepare those?” Donghyuck looks at him, confused. He doesn’t really know how things work in the entertainment industry, but he guesses that the idols are always given whatever they need.

“I just have a specific pen I like, you know, like those that feel smooth when you write, like-“

“Yes, I know,” Donghyuck stops him, making Jeno’s face turn red. Donghyuck has only seen this man twice, but his fair complexion that has him turning red with the slightest teasing is very interesting to Donghyuck after finding out he was an idol. “Come on, I’ll find your one true pen.”

Jeno follows as Donghyuck turns to the stationery shelf, filled from the top all the way to the bottom with various pens, markers and highlighters. 

“Here you go. You can test them out on the paper right there,” Donghyuck shows him the paper full of strangers’ scribbles, mostly random names and lines. He catches a glimpse of a ‘stan nct!!’ at the corner of the paper, but Jeno doesn’t seem to notice. “Take your time, okay? I’ll be at the counter.”

Jeno hesitantly nods, prompting Donghyuck to leave him to go to the counter. A pair of customers enter the store, Donghyuck immediately tends to them. He sees Jeno pacing left and right, straining his neck to take a look at Donghyuck from time to time.

“You could at least try to not be so obvious,” Donghyuck says as he passes behind Jeno who’s clearing his throat and reaching for his third pen. 

“I’m just trying these,” Jeno struggles to open the cap, pulling on it with a soft grunt. “These pens. Very nice pens.”

“They are, indeed,” Donghyuck chuckles, making his way behind the counter to complete the couple’s payment. He sees Jeno with a handful of pens, markers and a highlighter lining up behind the couple at a distance. “Thank you, please come again,” Donghyuck says to the pair.

The moment the pair leaves, Jeno scurries to the counter and places the stationeries in front of Donghyuck. “All of these, please. Oh, and this pack of gum.”

“Watermelon flavoured? The only person that has ever bought this aside from my neighbour’s son is my friend,” Donghyuck says as he scans the items, tapping away at the screen.

“It’s not for me, it’s for a friend. One of my producers, actually.”

“How funny would it be if your producer is my friend, who's also a producer?” Donghyuck laughs. “Would you like a paper bag?”

“No, thank you. Just put them in my bag,” Jeno puts his sling bag on the counter, opening the zip. “Also, I’m not sure if you know him, but my friend is Mark.”

Donghyuck stops scanning and looks up at Jeno, eyebrows raised. “Mark? As in Mark Lee?”

Jeno nods. “Mark Lee.”

“Dude, he comes here like, every single day,” Donghyuck shakes his head. “The world sure is small.”

“It is, indeed,” Jeno taps his fingers on the wooden counter, rocking back and forth on his heels. “Hey, do you have a piece of paper? I need to pass a note to Mark hyung.”

“Sure, but aren’t you meeting him-“

“Yeah, no, I’m only meeting him next week, and you said he comes here every day, right? You’ll probably meet him before I do,” Jeno waves his hands around, almost knocking over the mini keychain stand on the counter. “Please?”

“Okay, sure,” Donghyuck pulls out his Shiba Inu sticky note that he got at the Japanese dollar store from the drawer and a ballpoint pen that's apparently from a hotel in Vietnam that Mr. Park stayed in when he went for a vacation 3 years ago. “Here you go.”

“Nice,” Jeno pays for the items and scoots to the side, using his body as a cover to prevent Donghyuck from seeing whatever he’s writing on the little piece of paper. Donghyuck ignores him, opting to fix the candy display and throwing out the empty boxes. 

When Jeno is done, he hands Donghyuck the pen and the note facing down. “Thank you. I should get going now, before someone gets real mad at me,” he points at his phone, and it lights up to show missed calls and rows of text messages.

“I’ll pass the note to Mark when I see him,” Donghyuck smiles at him, walking alongside him to the door.

“Sure,” Jeno snorts, but Donghyuck can’t really tell what’s amusing him. “I hope you have a nice day.”

“You too, sir. Please don’t hesitate to come again, even if you haven’t finished the book.”

“You’re mean,” Jeno says as he pushes the door open. “Goodbye, Donghyuck-ssi.”

Donghyuck bows, smiling the widest at him. He heaves out a sigh, turning on his heel to head back to the counter. The Shibu Inu sticky notes sit on the counter, only the blank white part visible to Donghyuck. He never asked Jeno what the note was about, and now he’s weirdly intrigued.

Don’t get him wrong, Donghyuck doesn’t like breaching people’s privacy and snooping around others’ business, but technically the sticky note is his and he can’t possibly wait until Mark sees the note just to have him hide it from Donghyuck—

Okay, whatever, he’s reading it. He snatches the sticky note, flipping it over, eyes quickly scanning the content.

_hey donghyuck,  
i think there’s something wrong with my eyes  
bcs i cant seem to take them off your cute face_

_jeno, xx-xxx xxxx_

_ps: check the paper at the pen stand_

Donghyuck can’t help the grin that creeps up his face. He rolls his eyes when he thinks about how obvious it was that Jeno was lying. Jeno Lee is just unbelievable.

(He did check the papers, and he found plenty of other cheesy pick up lines, such as ‘ _are you a parking ticket? bcs you’ve got fine written all over you_ ’, ‘ _did the sun come out or did you just smile at me_ ’ and ‘ _hey there, i’m a thief, and i’m here to steal your heart!!_ ’ with a bunch of hearts around it.

The next day, when Mark comes to the store in the morning with his gym bag, Donghyuck hits his shoulder and scolds him for not telling Donghyuck that he knows Jeno. Mark could do nothing but stare at him with a face laced with confusion.)

The face of a certain Jeno Lee remains on Donghyuck’s mind, mainly because he’s been barging into Donghyuck’s life more often than Donghyuck would have ever expected. After his visit on Monday, he’s been frequenting the shop, popping up early in the morning or when the shop is about to close. He’s always spouting a different reason every time Donghyuck greets him at the door.

Donghyuck eyes him when the door opens 2 weeks after, Jeno Lee strutting in with his hair done and an exhausted look on his face. He looks like he had just come back from a shooting, dressed in a black turtleneck and leather jacket hanging from his arm, ears stuffed with Airpods.

“Welcome back. Have you finally moved on from Chapter 1 of Emma?” Donghyuck teases, reaching out to hang his jacket. Jeno hands him the black leather jacket, pulling his face mask down to his chin and an Airpod out.

“I read it last night,” Jeno pauses, looking anywhere but into Donghyuck’s eyes. “And fell asleep.”

Donghyuck finds it cute, his effort to read the book although Donghyuck knows full well that with how Jeno’s been reading in front of him over his visits to the store, he wouldn’t be finishing the book in months, or even a year. He’s surprised Jeno is still trying to read despite his busy schedule of shootings, practice and music shows.

“What are you here for today?” Donghyuck stuffs his hands in the pocket of his apron. He’s been thinking about what other excuse Jeno could come up with for today since this morning, before Renjun called him out for staring at the door like he’s waiting for his husband to come home from war. “Do you need help with anything?”

“Not really.”

“Then?”

Jeno turns to make eye contact with Donghyuck with the most nonchalant face, and says, “just wanted to see you.”

If life was like one of his novels, Donghyuck is 100% sure that his face perfectly fit the description of ‘many shades of red’. He can feel his face heating up, and he has to turn away from Jeno’s beautiful smile to get his mind off the words he's just said. He hears a low whistle coming from Jaemin, who’s accompanying Chenle and Jisung at the table as they finish up their literature work.

“D-do you want a drink?” Donghyuck steers the conversation away and heads for the counter, back facing Jeno as he busies himself with picking out coffee sachets that are all literally the same type. 

His ears catch onto a low chuckle coming from Jeno, who decides to follow Donghyuck and lean against the counter. When Donghyuck turns to look at him, a sly grin toys on his face as he flashes the crescent moons of his eyes to Donghyuck. “Coffee, please.”

“Go and take a seat, I’ll bring it to you soon,” Donghyuck says, in an attempt to get the other as far away from him as possible.

“It’s okay, I’m gonna wait for it,” Jeno leans his body weight over the counter. If he leans any closer to Donghyuck, half of his body would be over the wooden counter separating the two men. _Curse Jeno Lee_ , Donghyuck thought. He could feel the other’s eyes following his every move, slowly growing insecure of how his back looks like.

When Donghyuck turned around with the mug in his hand, Jeno has a hand stretched out with a 1,000 won bill between his pointer and middle fingers. A paper bag from the mall’s donut store hangs from his pinky, one that Donghyuck never noticed when he first came in.

“For you,” Jeno says, placing the box on the counter.

Donghyuck lifts the box at the top, seeing half a dozen of assorted donuts before looking up at Jeno with a frown. “What?”

“The donuts. They’re for you.”

“All of them?”

Jeno nods and pushes the box closer towards Donghyuck. “I didn’t know what you like—not that you ever told me—so I just got a bunch of different ones. I hope you like at least one of them.”

Donghyuck stares at him in disbelief for another moment before closing the box. He puts down Jeno’s mug of coffee and looks at him straight in the eyes. “I’m- Why?”

“Just because.”

Donghyuck bites on his bottom lip, wordlessly turning around and grabbing a few plates. “Come on,” he motions towards the table, Jeno wordlessly following him from behind.

“Ooh, donuts!” Chenle exclaims, already closing his literature book and pushing his scattered papers away. Jisung hits his arm and mutters under his breath, hastily fixing his appearance in the meantime.

“I hope you don’t mind sharing,” Donghyuck says, taking out the donuts and placing them one by one on the plates. “Which one do you like?”

“I’m- I like everything,” Jeno mumbles.

“Hyung, you want the Oreo one right? There’s two, can I have one?” Chenle asks, already reaching for it. Jaemin and Jisung argue over the one with a Reese’s cup cut in half as the topping. Donghyuck hums and turns to Jeno to ask what he wants, but the other has a small pout on his face as he stares at the empty spot of the Oreo donut.

“You can have this one,” Donghyuck places the other donut on a plate and pushes it towards Jeno.

“No! It’s okay, I can eat something else,” Jeno waves his hand, pretending to pick out another topping. He’s about to take a glazed donut when Donghyuck stops him.

“Share with me,” Donghyuck takes a knife and splits the donut in half. He notices the way Jeno reddens just a tiny bit, before giving Donghyuck a shy smile and picking up the donut.

“Hyung, Jisung here is a huge fan of yours,” Chenle says through a mouthful of donut, earning a slap on his back from Jisung. “Ow! What the hell?”

Donghyuck can’t help but giggle, watching as Jisung avoids Jeno’s gaze. Jaemin is pushing at his shoulder teasingly, cooing at his garbled complaints.

“Thank you for supporting me,” Jeno flashes his infamous eye smile, the one Donghyuck has familiarised himself with through multiple scrolls on Instagram and Google searches of his name. He’s seen how his fans gush over Jeno’s smile.

(He’s also seen the hot side of Jeno when he’s onstage, his piercing gaze and charismatic smirk that has Donghyuck reeling and shutting off his phone when he catches himself thinking about it for a second too long.)

“Jisung dances, you know,” Donghyuck teases, enjoying the younger’s flushed face and his weak ‘hyuuung’. “There’s a dance studio nearby where he goes to dance with his friends. Didn’t you film a cover dance of one of Jeno’s songs?”

Jaemin has taken the liberty of opening the video on his phone, handing the phone to Jeno. Jeno dusts a hand on his jeans before carefully taking Jaemin’s phone. He watches the video with wide eyes, ‘ooh’s escaping his mouth from time to time. Donghyuck cackles at Jisung, who’s trying his best to hide himself behind Chenle. 

“The one doing my part is you, right?” Jeno asks, pointing at the Jisung in the video. He is in the middle, dressed in an outfit similar to the one Jeno wore in the music video. Renjun had helped him thrift the outfit, dragging the boy to the thrift store two blocks over and helping him sew the strips onto the pants. Donghyuck thought they nailed the outfit pretty well (based on Donghyuck’s knowledge after watching all of his music videos and listening to all of his songs).

“Y-yes! That’s me, the other members are my friends,” Jisung gives him a sheepish smile. “It’s an honour to perform your work, sir.”

“Oh, please. Just Jeno hyung is good,” Jeno says, handing Jaemin his phone back. “You and your friends nailed that.”

“Oh no, thank you, that’s so much coming from you. Thank you so much,” Jisung rambles, looking like he’s so close to just crying in front of his actual idol. Chenle has his phone out, recording Jisung’s reaction and cackling along with Jaemin. Donghyuck reminds him not to post the video anywhere to respect Jeno’s privacy, and Jeno gives him a thankful grin at the gesture.

“Look at you, Sung. Getting recognised by Jeno Lee himself,” Donghyuck preens, totally enjoying the younger’s reaction towards any movement from Jeno. “Next thing you know, you’ll be performing alongside him.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Jeno says after swallowing his last bite of donut. “I can talk to the company for permission to record a video with you.”

Jisung’s eyes widen. “Really?”

“Yeah! I can text my manager to arrange something,” Jeno pulls out his phone and quickly types out a text. Jisung is squealing and shaking Chenle from side to side as Jeno exchanges a few texts before finally looking up again. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Oh my god, I have to tell the others. Dude, I have to tell the others!” Jisung leaves the table and runs out of the shop, Chenle trailing right behind him. Jaemin gets up from his seat and nags at the two youngest for going out without their jackets. Donghyuck merely chuckles, watching as Jisung jumps up and down while talking on the phone and Jaemin throws the jackets into Chenle’s face.

“Is it always like this?”

“Most of the time, yeah. They’re quite a rowdy bunch,” Donghyuck leans back in his seat. “Isn’t it the same for your team?”

“Well, I'm the youngest. Sometimes the age difference gets too apparent for me to have fun,” Jeno confesses, fiddling with his fingers. The conversation ends there, but they sit in a comfortable silence as they watch the trio start a snow fight right outside the window.

“Thank you,” Donghyuck speaks up. Jeno hums in question, tilting his head towards Donghyuck. “For Jisung. He really loves dancing, and it would be good for him to make a video with you.”

“It’s nothing. I’m not even that big of a celebrity.”

“Excuse me? You have a huge fanbase, you get millions of views on your music videos and you have companies lining up to sponsor you. You were the cover of last month’s health magazine and did a photoshoot for next month’s Grazia. And don’t even get me started with how many ads you did as a child, what more now that you’re an idol-“

“You sure know a lot for someone who didn’t even recognise me when we first met,” Jeno interrupts with an amused grin, suddenly leaning closer towards Donghyuck.

“No- I mean-“ Donghyuck splutters, turning his face away from Jeno’s stare. “The Internet exists for a reason!”

“Sure, baby.”

It’s the way Jeno nonchalantly calls him ‘baby’ with zero hesitation, that catches Donghyuck off guard.

“Baby?”

“Oh, sorry, do you not like it?” Jeno frowns.

“No, I don’t mind. It’s just,” Donghyuck shifts in his chair, mentally telling himself that he’s doing so to look at his friends, not to avoid Jeno’s eyes on him. “I’m not used to it.”

“Well,” Jeno gets out of his chair and turns to Donghyuck. “You can start getting used to it now, baby.”

Donghyuck is left blushing to the max, biting his lips and internally screaming as Jeno leaves the shop, immediately gathering a pile of snow with his bare hands to throw at the others.

Donghyuck really values privacy. But hanging out with a member of a famous idol group doesn’t provide him with much of said privacy.

He’s currently at McDonald’s, seated beside Jeno, who’s talking to Mark about a song in his upcoming album. He looks down at his half piece of hotcakes, and looks back up. 

“You good?” Renjun asks through a mouthful of hash browns. Mark tells him to swallow his food before talking, but Renjun just waves him off. “You’ve been staring at the girls behind me for some time.”

“They won’t stop staring,” Donghyuck says, just a tiny bit annoyed at the intrusive behaviour. 

“Whose idea was it to get breakfast—at a McDonald’s out of every single place in this town—with a celebrity and a famous producer slash lyricist?” Renjun nudges his boyfriend, who chokes on his coffee.

“I need new ideas for my songs!” Mark exclaims. 

Donghyuck understands, and he usually doesn’t mind a few passersby talking about Mark in hushed voices, but the girls have been whispering and squealing with every little movement from both Jeno and Mark, and Donghyuck doesn’t know how long he can stand another high-pitched giggle before he snaps.

(It’s irritating Donghyuck because Jeno has been asked to give a signature and take a picture twice in the time it takes for them to line up to order and wait for their food.)

“What’s wrong? Are you uncomfortable? We can leave if you want,” Jeno places his hand on Donghyuck’s arm, looking at him with concerned eyes. 

“It’s okay, take your time. I’m not even done eating,” Donghyuck smiles at him, gesturing at his hotcakes drowned in maple syrup. 

“This is what you get for dating famous people. Deal with it,” Renjun crumples the paper up and wipes his hand with a tissue. 

“We’re not... dating?” Donghyuck’s sentence comes out more like a question.

Renjun just smiles at him, the one where Donghyuck can’t tell what he’s thinking. He frowns, but continues to shove the leftover hotcakes into his mouth. “How do you deal with it, then?”

“Just smile and stare at them for an uncomfortably long time until they look away.”

“Don’t they hate you for that?”

“Nah, he’s too cute to intimidate anyone. Sometimes people like him more than me,” Mark pinches Renjun’s cheek, earning him an offended noise. “I’ve had people coming up to us to take a picture with him. They asked _me_ to take the picture.”

Jeno chuckles, and Donghyuck thinks that he’s the cutest when he laughs. Mark drops his head onto the younger’s shoulder. “Everyone is whipped for Renjun Huang, pink-haired college student who spits diss track level insults like it’s nobody’s business all the while looking like a tiny cotton candy fluff with too big glasses.”

“Ugh, shut up.”

“You know you’re cute, Junnie.”

“Gross,” Donghyck rolls his eyes. “Some of us are single, hyung.”

“You’re cute too,” Jeno suddenly says, his head resting on his hand on the table.

“Some of us are just trying to have a meal,” Mark interjects.

“Oh, screw you. I should stop letting you hang out with Mark hyung,” Donghyuck pretends to remain unbothered, but the slight voice crack has his face heating up. Jeno smiles at him fondly, amused at Donghyuck’s reaction.

“Alright, lover boys. I’m getting holes on the back of my head from the girls staring at us, so can we finish up and get going?” Renjun piles the trash into one tray, already pushing his chair to throw them away.

“Of course! Just let me go wash my hands,” Jeno dashes to the washroom, and Donghyuck helps Renjun with cleaning the tables (because he’s a conscious man who has the common sense of throwing his own trash and putting the trays away).

They decide to wait outside to let other customers sit, standing in front of the door as Renjun shows Mark pet-friendly parks that they can go to in the afternoon. Donghyuck taps his foot on the floor, occasionally glancing to find Jeno, but a few minutes pass before Mark asks. “Is he putting the sink together or something?”

“You guys can go wait in the car, I’ll go check on him,” Donghyuck says, passing his tote bag to Renjun. He pushes the door open and looks around, but there's no sign of Jeno anywhere. He notices that the seats occupied by the three girls who were sitting behind them are vacant, but he's sure he didn’t see them leaving through the door. 

With a worried feeling, he walks to the washroom and pushes the door open, just to see Jeno being crowded by the girls from before. They’re all up in his personal space, one of them tugging on Jeno’s arm and another shoving her phone is Jeno’s face. 

Donghyuck clears his throat, but none of them seem to notice his presence, Jeno busy trying to fend off the girls and trying his best to get out of there.

“Hey, Jen, the manager’s calling for you,” Donghyuck says a bit too loud, finally getting their attention. He hears the girls clicking their tongue, and one of them whines to Jeno, saying ‘just one picture, please, oppa’ before batting her eyelashes at him.

Donghyuck crosses his arms and taps his foot with an annoyed expression on his face. Jeno pulls his arm out of the constraint of the girls, pushing past them. “Sorry, I’m really in a rush.”

When Jeno reaches his side, Donghyuck purposely holds his wrist and pulls him out of the washroom. Why did McDonald’s think it was a good idea to put one door for both men and women’s toilets? They have the space to at least make two doors, it’s logical.

They rush out of the restaurant, incessantly knocking on the window of Mark’s car and urging him to unlock the doors. Quickly sliding into the backseat, Donghyuck sighs as he leans back.

“So did you finally finish putting together the sink?” Mark jokes, but Donghyuck just rolls his eyes at him.

“Babe, you’re not funny,” Renjun voices out, eyes still fixed on his phone screen.

“I knew those girls were up to no good,” Donghyuck says. “How can they attack you in the toilet like that?”

“You got attacked?” Mark frowns at them through the mirror, and Renjun turns around with a worried look. “Are you okay?”

“Attacked isn’t the right word. They just wanted a picture,” Jeno reassures.

“That was harassment, Jeno. People, especially strangers, don’t just shove their phones in your face and hang onto you, refusing to let go,” Donghyuck huffs. He knows that Jeno is incapable of saying no after experiencing a few situations with him, but he doesn't like how Jeno is being dismissive of the girls’ actions.

“I know, I’m sorry,” Jeno apologises, and Donghyuck suddenly feels bad for being the cause of Jeno’s sullen mood. Mark has started driving at this point, with Renjun playing his playlist on the radio before Mark could complain.

“Hey, it’s not your fault,” Donghyuck starts with a hushed voice, making sure he is unheard over the Frozen song that Renjun is belting to. “They were being unethical, even as your fans. I know you have to keep up your image and take care of your relationship with fans, but there’s a limit to how much you should withstand. As much as they are people, you are one yourself. You can’t be sacrificing your privacy for a few squealing teenage girls.”

Jeno stays silent, fiddling with his fingers. Donghyuck noticed that he always does that whenever he’s not feeling his best, like the one time he made a mistake during a performance and came to the bookstore looking like he was close to tears.

(Donghyuck had sat him down and looked him in the eyes before saying, “I can say a lot of things to comfort you, but I’m not Jeno Lee and I don’t know what can make you feel better. What I can do is fix you your favourite cup of instant coffee, and read Peter Pan to you.”

“I love Peter Pan.”

“I know.”

Safe to say, they spent the remaining hours before Donghyuck had to close up the shop with Jeno hugging Donghyuck while he read Peter Pan to him, heart filled with an unfamiliar but comfortable warmth.)

“I’m sorry if I seem harsh, but I’m worried about you.”

Jeno unbuckles his seatbelt and scoots closer to Donghyuck, taking over the middle seat. He puts his seatbelt on again, and leans against Donghyuck so his head is on Donghyuck’s shoulder. “Can I play with your hand, please?”

“You don’t have to ask, you big baby,” Donghyuck gives him what he wants, and Jeno starts tracing patterns with his pointer finger into Donghyuck’s palm.

“I’m sorry for making you worry,” Jeno says. “Thank you for saving me before.”

“You make it sound like I’m some sort of superhero,” Donghyuck knocks his head with Jeno’s.

“You are. The most adorable superhero in the world.”

“Cheesy, aren’t you?”

Jeno suddenly intertwines their fingers, turning their locked hands left and right. He looks up at Donghyuck with his signature eye smile. “Your baby.” 

“Today, I offer you gluten-free scones and a jar of pure unsweetened blueberry jam that took way too much time to make. Tomorrow, who knows,” Jaemin lifts the cover of the container, swinging his hand around in an attempt to imitate a fancy butler. “Boys and boys, enjoy.”

“God bless you, Jaem,” Renjun says, already picking out the biggest scone out of the container. Donghyuck hands him a small plate, the other almost buzzing in excitement.

“How would you survive without me?” Jaemin boasts.

“Shouldn’t you be thanking me? I’m the one that always recommends you new books with new recipes for you to try out,” Donghyuck teases, cutting the scones into two halves and spreading the jam onto the bottom half.

“Yes, thanks to you, too. But my hands do all the magic,” Jaemin wriggles his fingers, and shows off his neatly cut and taken care of nails. When Donghyuck found out that he had a whole nail set, they spent an entire day doing their nails, Donghyuck ending up with black painted nails that his little sister teased him for. He was labelled 'e-boy' for the whole week before Jaemin finally remembered to bring the acetone to scrub the colour off.

“Oh my God, eating healthy has never tasted so good,” Renjun hums giddily. “I have to save some for Mark, or he’ll sulk about it for the next 2 weeks.”

“Go on, go on. I made a whole bunch especially for you savages who know nothing except from how to enjoy my creations.”

“You still can’t beat Aunty Park’s though. They’re revolutionary.”

“I swear I’ll get as good as her and open up my own bakery. Then, you’ll be blacklisted and I won't allow you to even step into my shop without kneeling on the ground with your arms raised in the air.”

“Dramatic bitch. Just sit down and eat your damn scones,” Renjun smacks Jaemin’s arm, prompting him to whine and plop down in the seat next to Renjun.

“Oh! I should save some for Jeno, he texted me that he’s coming over later today,” Donghyuck gets up from his seat to get a Tupperware from the shelf, taking 2 scones to give to Jeno.

“You’re finally on texting basis? I thought you’d be stuck with exclusively meeting each other and making plans at this bookstore,” Jaemin says.

“I actually had his number all this time, but I couldn’t find the right time to text,” Donghyuck pouts.

“At least now you won’t stare at the door and ask me a bazillion times whether Jeno is coming or not,” Renjun complains.

“Speaking of Jeno. Are you smooshing booties yet?” Jaemin asks. 

“First of all, never use that phrase ever again. It disgusts me. Second, we’re not dating. He’s just a friend,” Donghyuck emphasises on the word friend, like he’s trying to prove a point by changing the tone of his voice. 

“Soon enough you _will_ be smooshing booties,” Jaemin tries, Donghyuck threatening to throw the butter knife at him.

Renjun chuckles. “I think Jeno really likes you.”

“No, he doesn’t.”

“Hyuck, he’s an idol yet he comes here at least once a week amidst his hectic schedule. He spends hours on days without schedules just sitting next to you and pretending to read his book. He invites you for occasional Sunday brunch dates at cute cafes-“

“As friends!” Donghyuck tries to interject, but Renjun pays him no mind.

“-but you always ask if Mark and I can join when we’d rather be cuddling in bed and waking up at noon. He brings you desserts and always lets you pick first before sharing the rest. You hold hands in the backseat of my car, and you somehow manage to cuddle while sitting in wooden chairs. And I swear, if I hear the word baby from any of your mouths one more time-“

“Okay, I think he got your point, Jun,” Jaemin rests his hand on the older boy’s shoulder, making him huff and lean back in his seat. “What about you, Hyuck? Do you like Jeno?”

Donghyuck stares at the Tupperware with the two best-looking scones he picked out for Jeno, lips pursed. Sure, he’s been getting closer and closer to Jeno over the past month and a half, but he'd just never seen the possibility of there being something between them.

“What’s wrong, Hyuck?”

“I don’t really know?”

Renjun and Jaemin turn to look at him with equally confused faces.

“Don’t get me wrong. He’s great. He’s caring, sweet, very conventionally attractive (“Unnecessary detail,” Renjun adds) and like, overall a wonderful person. But at the same time, he’s a successful idol while I’m just a college student who works at a quaint bookstore.”

“And I’m just a baking-obsessed guy who probably has diabetes and Renjun is just a stressed art major who would definitely prefer moving to another planet but is only staying here for his rich composer boyfriend,” Jaemin points at Renjun.

“Don’t drag me into this,” Renjun scolds, smacking at the finger pointing at him.

“What I meant is, you’re not ‘just’ you. Sure, he’s fawned over by thousands of people, but that doesn’t mean you’re inferior just because you’re not in the same position as he is. You are you. Everyone has their own specialties, no matter how big of a difference you see when looking at Jeno and yourself. Because at the end of the day, you are Donghyuck Lee, friendly neighbourhood boy, loved by everyone. More specifically a certain boy in particular,” Jaemin grins.

“Thanks, Jaem,” Donghyuck grins back. “Though it does scare me. Being in a relationship that is.”

“It’s okay to be scared, Hyuck. You should go at your own pace, no one should be rushing you. Not me, not Jaemin, not Mark, especially not Jeno. I don’t care if he’s an idol or the son of the country’s president. If he hurts you, I’m ready to throw hands,” Renjun balls up his fists and pretends to jab at Jaemin, who playfully winces when Renjun’s tiny hands hit him.

“Jeno looks like he could pick you up and throw you to the moon.”

“Do not underestimate my strength, Na.”

Donghyuck chuckles. He watches as Jaemin and Renjun exchange playful banters, basking in their mere presence. Sometimes he feels like taping their mouths shut and tying them up to hang outside the shop to get attacked by the pigeons because of how annoying the duo can be when put together, but this time, he feels so grateful that he found them.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this but,” Donghyuck pauses. The two look at him, Renjun pulling on Jaemin’s ear as Jaemin pinches Renjun’s nose. “I really fucking love you guys.”

“I love you too, Hyuckie!” Jaemin replies.

“I hate you the most,” Renjun says.

(After the talk he had with Jaemin and Renjun, Donghyuck notices more things about Jeno.

Jeno Lee is the perfect idol, a dancer, a singer, a rapper and a hardworking lyricist (in his band’s upcoming full album). He charms people with his charisma on stage and the 180 image of him off stage, where he smiles with his eyes and lets out weird noises when he’s confused.

He is also Jeno Lee, the guy who brings his worn-out flask that he got from Starbucks everywhere. The guy who has brands waiting to sponsor him, yet he still supports small businesses that end up selling out their products after he’s seen wearing them.

He also notices how Jeno visibly lit up when Donghyuck said he didn’t invite anyone else for one of their Sunday brunch dates. How Jeno hooked his ankle around Donghyuck’s under the table, and how he fed Donghyuck his dish before eating it himself. How Jeno excitedly told Donghyuck about new ideas for a choreography in the middle of chewing on his food.

The thing Donghyuck notices the most is how comfortable Jeno has gotten around him. How Jeno is not hesitant to take Donghyuck’s hand anymore, or how Jeno snuggles his head in his neck when he side hugs Donghyuck. How Jeno would cover himself up in layers of sweaters and padded jackets on the coldest days of winter, and how he would link their pinkies and sway them back and forth as they walk together.

Donghyuck notices more things about Jeno, and perhaps Jaemin and Renjun are right. Perhaps Jeno does like Donghyuck.)

“What are you humming today? It sounds familiar,” Donghyuck turns to Chenle after seeing off a pair of customers. The younger has been glued to the chair for almost 2 hours, focused on trying to finish his math homework that doesn’t seem to progress at all over the winter break. 

“I’m pretty sure it’s Taylor Swift, but it’s been stuck in my head since Jisung played it while we were playing Mario Kart at his house yesterday.”

“You played Mario Kart but didn’t even touch your homework?”

“We did do it!” Chenle shows off the page, filled with calculations and some scribbles of ‘Stupid Chenle’ written in the corners. 

“Stop lying. The last time you did your homework here, you were still stuck on that question with those two wheels,” Donghyuck ruffles his hair, sitting in the seat beside him. “When’s Jisung coming?”

“He said he’ll be here once he finishes cleaning up the studio. Apparently they had their lunch without spreading the newspapers and Jisung, being the clumsy boy he is, spilled sweet and sour sauce all over the floor,” Chenle unlocks his phone and shows Donghyuck a picture Jisung had sent to him, of the familiar sight of the dance studio’s floor covered in an orange coloured liquid.

“Oh, Jisungie,” Donghyuck laughs. “Come on, I’ll help you with your homework before Jisung gets here. Then you can teach him how to do it.”

Chenle groans, dropping his head on the book on the table, but turns to look at Donghyuck. “Fine. Thanks, hyung.”

2 and a half questions later, the bell attached at the door frame rings. Donghyuck and Chenle look up, a familiar figure entering the door with two strangers trailing behind him.

“Jeno hyung!” Chenle exclaims excitedly, already flipping his math textbook closed.

“Hi, Chenle. Hey, Hyuck,” he greets and points at the person behind him with his thumb. “This is Doyoung hyung and Jaehyun hyung, my bandmates.”

“I know. I’ve seen both of your covers on YouTube, you both sound amazing,” Donghyuck goes to greet the men, shaking their hands. “Can I help you with anything?”

“We’re just here to look around. I’m looking for the continuation of the book I’m reading.”

“A batch of books just came yesterday, you can check them out at that shelf over there. There’s more books further inside the store, feel free to take your time and look around,” Donghyuck gestures towards the back of the shop, and flashes them a small smile. “I’ll be here if you need me.”

“I think Jeno needs you the most here,” Doyoung teases, already pulling on Jaehyun’s sleeve to look around the store.

“Hyung!” Jeno attempts to smack the older, but they only snicker and send suggestive winks that Donghyuck chooses to ignore. “I swear, they’ll never let me live my life peacefully.”

“It’s good that you get along well with them,” Donghyuck walks over to the back of the counter, already reaching for a mug. “Coffee?”

“Yes, please,” Jeno says, sitting down in the seat next to Chenle. Donghyuck watches them as he waits for the electric kettle to boil the water, Chenle animatedly showing off something on his phone to Jeno, and Jeno pulling on his books to flip through the questions.

It was honestly a sight to see.

Jeno, a boy who seems so far away from Donghyuck, a boy Donghyuck would’ve never expected to be friends with, a boy Donghyuck would’ve never expected to develop a liking for.

Jeno, a boy who, while befriending and flirting with Donghyuck like he’s merely breathing, has made himself a part of the little friend group that came together from Donghyuck’s job at the store.

Donghyuck stares at them for a tad bit too long, broken out of his trance by Jisung walking into the store with a scarf covering half of his face. The water had boiled a few moments ago, the mug with the coffee grains already forgotten by its side. He scrambles to finish making the coffee, accidentally spilling hot water on his hand.

Donghyuck’s yelp catches the trio’s attention, Jeno already pushing himself away from the table and rushing to Donghyuck’s side. 

“What happened? Are you okay? Does it hurt? Come on, put it under the water,” Jeno pulls on Donghyuck’s hand, putting it under the running water at the sink. Donghyuck winces at the sharp pain he feels, clenching and unclenching his hand a few times.

“Are you okay, hyung?” Jisung asks, voice laced with worry as he looks over the counter.

“Don’t worry, Sung. It doesn’t hurt that much,” Donghyuck assures him.

“You should be more careful, Hyuck. That’s boiling water, for God’s sake,” Jeno scolds him, but his tone is more caring rather than mad. Donghyuck can’t help but smile, watching as Jeno’s brows furrow and his bottom lip juts out a bit out of concentration. They stay like that for some time, Jeno’s hands and the running water feeling cool on Donghyuck’s hand.

“I think it’s okay, now,” Donghyuck says, telling Jeno to turn off the water. He shakes the excess water off, the lingering pain still there but bearable. “Jisung, can you get the ointment in the first aid kit?”

“Where is it? I’ll go get it,” Jeno volunteers, but Donghyuck places a hand on his shoulder.

“I doubt you can find it in the storeroom,” Donghyuck jokes, blowing slowly at the spot that’s significantly more red than the surrounding skin. Jeno winces every time Donghyuck so much as twitches, contemplating whether he should be holding Donghyuck’s hand or not.

Jisung comes back with the ointment in his hand, uncapping the tube and squirting some of it onto his finger. Donghyuck clenches his teeth when the younger helps apply the medicine on him, sucking a sharp breath when he presses a smidge too hard against his skin.

“Sorry, hyung,” Jisung apologises, but Donghyuck just smiles at him and tells him it’s okay. “Go on and take a seat, I’ll handle the cashier for now.”

“Aww, Jisungie cares about me.”

“I changed my mind. You seem fine, hyung.”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. Thanks, Sung,” Donghyuck moves to sit at the table, Jeno following closely behind him with careful hands that hover around him without actually making contact with his body. Chenle has moved with his textbook and questions to sit next to Jisung at the counter, trying to show off what Donghyuck had taught him just before. “I only burned my hand, not my entire body. You don’t have to be so scared of touching me.”

“Are you sure you’re okay? Doyoung hyung drove us here, I can ask him to bring you to the hospital if you want,” Jeno suggests, already trying to call Doyoung from the back of the store. Donghyuck sees the men wandering around the therapy books, reading descriptions after descriptions and picking out some of them.

“Don’t exaggerate. I’ve gone through worse.” Like falling down on the zebra crossing in the middle of the road without being tripped by any external force, solely caused by his own clumsiness and scraping his palms. He had them wrapped for almost 2 weeks after that, needing help to do every single daily task.

“I’m just worried.”

“I know. I’ll be careful from now on.”

“You should’ve been careful long ago, but I’ll take that.”

“You’re insufferable,” Donghyuck can’t really hit Jeno, so he opts to nudging the other’s arm with his shoulder. Jeno laughs, occasionally blowing on the ointment-covered skin. 

(Donghyuck felt the urge to ask Jeno to kiss it better, but Jeno doesn’t need to know that, not after he takes the idea, smashes it flat and stores it into the deepest part of his brain.)

Donghyuck’s realisation is slow.

It doesn't hit him in the face out of nowhere. It isn't like a freight train zooming past you at a speed that you can do nothing but stare.

Instead, it’s slow. It’s slow, in the sense that he knew it was coming. Inevitable. It’s slow, like pouring thick cake batter from a bowl into its pan. It’s slow, because Donghyuck knew it was coming, he could feel it coming deep inside his heart.

Donghyuck comes to a realisation on a cold Sunday morning, when people would rather be spending their mornings wrapped up in their blanket like a Christmas present, along with their lover, or favourite pillows, or whatever shape of companion they had at the time. 

He comes to a realisation when he’s seated in front of Jeno, on their third Sunday Brunch Date (Jeno only counts the ones without Mark or Renjun or whoever it is that Donghyuck dragged together with him), a banana french toast drenched in maple syrup hanging from his fork.

 _He likes Jeno_.

“Hyuck?”

Jeno’s voice calling his name snaps him out of his thoughts.

“Uh?”

“The toast. Can I have a bite?” Jeno asks.

“S-sure. Here,” Donghyuck flips the fork so the handle is in Jeno’s direction, but the older only stares at it with those adorable puppy eyes that Donghyuck wishes to look at forever.

“Feed me,” Jeno pouts. “Please?”

“You’re such a baby,” Donghyuck complains, but still feeds him.

Jeno makes a happy noise and shakes his head from side to side as he munches on the toast. “Your baby.”

“What’s with you and your obsession with calling me and being called ‘baby’?”

“I think it’s endearing. Don’t you like it?” 

“I don’t like being compared to a tiny version of a human that's closer to being a pet than human,” Donghyuck jokes. He didn’t think it was that funny—it wasn’t his best joke—but Jeno finds humour in everything he says, laughing heartily with his head thrown back and a hand covering his mouth.

“Well, I like it,” Jeno pushes his almost empty plate to the side, suddenly standing up to get out of his chair. “I need to use the restroom, wait for me, okay?”

“Be careful. I won’t be saving you from the grips of teenage girls anymore,” Donghyuck smiles at him, making Jeno groan as he walks towards the direction of the restroom.

He looks around, scanning the almost empty cafe apart from a small family of three, and an old woman with a cat sleeping on her lap. Jeno had downright squealed upon seeing the cat, and had asked for the lady’s permission to pet it. Donghyuck had made sure Jeno didn’t get his hand anywhere near his face before washing it thoroughly, afraid of triggering his allergy.

His mind was particularly empty, just enjoying the vibe of the cafe and savouring the toast he just finished, until his mind somehow made its way to thinking of Jeno.

It’s been less than a minute since Jeno left, but Donghyuck is already thinking of him. 

Of his smile when he greeted him at the front of the store this morning, the place that became their meeting spot before they walk to wherever they are going. 

Of the brushes of their hands as they walked side by side, talking about how nice the weather is despite the cold air of winter blowing into their jackets.

Of the way Jeno gently held his arm throughout the walk to the cafe after Donghyuck tripped on a stray branch and almost fell face first on the sidewalk.

Donghyuck feels like slamming his head on the table over and over, and screaming his heart out. He’s fallen so hard, he doesn’t know what to do.

So he texts his Lord and saviour, Renjun Huang.

donghyuck: jun  
donghyuck: jun i know you’re awake i saw that you’re online

renjun: ugh you’re so annoying leave me alone

donghyuck: help pls  
donghyuck: i fell

renjun: ?? bitch wtf then get up???

donghyuck: i fell off a cliff and the first thing you do is tell me to get up?

renjun: you fell off a cliff and the first thing you do is text me??

donghyuck: good point  
donghyuck: anyways  
donghyuck: i’ve fallen for jeno

renjun: ok and?

donghyuck: ..  
donghyuck: wdym and??

renjun: this is So not surprising, what else do you want me to say

donghyuck: idk?? seriously bro help me  
donghyuck: how do i break it to him

renjun: you make it sound like you’re telling him that you’re secretly a serial killer and that you’ve been killing off all of the people that’s ever bothered him all this time, hence the constant disappearance of the people around him

donghyuck: that’s dark  
donghyuck: also not helpful

renjun: it’s half past 10, do you expect me to function

donghyuck: yes

renjun: fuck you

donghyuck: please renjun i will make jaemin bake that mochi bread you love so much

renjun: deal  
renjun: ok  
renjun: just tell jeno that you like him and he’ll confess his undying love for you in return

Donghyuck is about to send a reply to scold Renjun but he hears footsteps on the wooden floor, much like the sound of Jeno’s boots that probably cost more than his monthly spendings. He looks up from his phone and sees Jeno with a slice of cake and two forks.

“Hey. Sorry it took a while, I didn’t know which cake to choose,” Jeno places the plate in the middle of the table, Donghyuck passing their empty plates to a waitress passing by. “I hope you like rainbow cake.”

“I like anything.” _I like you_.

Jeno hums, already cutting a piece from the slice. He feeds Donghyuck first before eating a piece himself. Donghyuck turns on his phone, and Renjun has sent him a ‘get ur man’ and several texts from Jaemin which include random keyboard smashes and ‘OH MY GOD R U FINALLY CONFESSING’. Renjun must’ve texted him about their conversation.

Donghyuck’s heart feels like it’s beating out of his chest when he sees the word ‘confess’. He had no plans whatsoever to confess. Heck, he only realised moments ago that his not-so-friendly feelings for Jeno were genuine and his head wasn’t messing around with him. He definitely did not wake up this morning, got ready and met Jeno with any intentions of spilling his heart contents to the boy in front of him.

His palms are starting to get sweaty, and he’s tapping his foot against the wooden floor, immediately stopping when he notices how annoying it sounds. Jeno is cooing at the cat that’s leaving the cafe with the lady, completely unaware of the ball of anxiety trembling across from him.

Just as the lady makes her way out of the cafe and Jeno has shifted his attention away from the feline, Donghyuck makes up his mind and decides to speak up.

“Hey-“ Jeno and Donghyuck say at the same time.

Donghyuck stares at Jeno, while the other boy stares back at him.

“You first-“ they do it again, eyes widening even further.

Donghyuck can’t help the giggle that escapes his mouth. “Okay. You go first.”

Jeno visibly sucks in a breath, gently placing his fork down on the plate. The cake is half eaten, the strawberry decorating the top of it still untouched.

“Okay. So.”

Donghyuck pushes his endless thoughts to the back of his mind, telling his heart to slow down as he wipes his sweaty palms on his jeans. “Yeah?”

“I know we’ve known each other for like, over 3 months? You’re already starting your semester again, and I’m releasing my new album in just a month from now. You know I’m about to get busy after this.”

“I know.”

“Well. I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I can’t really find any other suitable time to tell you this but,” Jeno rests his hand's palm up on the table, silently asking for Donghyuck’s hand. Donghyuck slides his hand into his, Jeno’s fingers automatically wrapping around his.

“Yes, Jeno?”

“I’m aware that you might not feel the same way, but I really like you. And I mean really. Not in the close friends way. I like you, as not a friend. Like, romantically. Been a while, too. Like, you know. I like it when you joke around with me, I like it when you sit next to me, I like it when you call my name or call me baby. I just like being around you. I like your face, I like your smile, I like your laugh, I like your-“

Jeno’s ramblings fall on deaf ears as Donghyuck stares at him wide-eyed, brain short-circuiting. There was this noise, the one that he has to hit his head a few times to get rid of. He could only feel the harsh pounding of his heart, coursing through his veins.

“-hyuck? Donghyuck? Are you okay?”

“Huh?” 

“I’m sorry. Did I say something wrong?” Jeno cups Donghyuck’s hand with both of his, a concerned look spread across his face. “God, I shouldn’t have said anything. I’m sorry, Hyuck, I-“

“No!” Donghyuck yelps a tad too loud, catching the attention of the family who are sitting a few tables away from them. “I mean, no, I’m okay,” he lowers his voice, casting the family an apologetic glance. “It’s just- I- oh my God, Jeno, I like you too.”

“No, no, it’s okay, Hyuck. You don’t have to say it back.”

“Jen, I’m serious. I _really_ really like you too. It took me a while to realise, but I feel the same.”

Jeno bites on his bottom lip, suddenly heaving a sigh and pulling Donghyuck’s hand towards his face. A laugh makes its way out of his mouth, but Donghyuck can’t see his facial expression because his and Jeno’s hands are covering his face.

“The last time I was this anxious was my debut stage.”

“Does that make me special?”

Jeno finally uncovers his face, his mouth stretched into a wide smile that tugs his cheekbones upwards. He plants a soft peck on Donghyuck’s knuckles, before looking up at Donghyuck again. “You are so, so special, Donghyuck Lee.”

Donghyuck scrunches his nose, way too happy to be caring about how weird he looks whenever he does it. He holds Jeno’s hand with both of his, and they stare at each other in the eyes for a few seconds before bursting into laughter.

“So, baby,” Donghyuck starts, holding their hands up in between their faces. “Are you gonna ask me out or...”

“Seriously, Hyuck? I just confessed my feelings for you and you still want me to submit to the standards of society that tell us that nothing is official unless I say it with my own mouth that I want you to be my boyfriend?”

Donghyuck pretends to think for a bit before grinning at Jeno. “Yes. That’s exactly what I want.”

“Renjun is a bad influence on you.”

“Oh come on, Jen.”

“Okay, fine,” Jeno rolls his eyes, before pulling his chair closer towards the table with his foot so his distance with Donghyuck is smaller. He closes his eyes, takes a deep breath and opens them to stare straight into Donghyuck’s eyes. 

“Donghyuck Lee, will you be my boyfriend?”

-

(Jaemin slams the door of the bookstore open, the bell making a cut-off noise that makes it sound like he broke it.

“For God’s sake, Jaem, Mr. Park is gonna make you pay for collateral damage if you keep doing that,” Mark enters behind him, followed by Renjun. “Hey, Bomin. Sorry for the ruckus.”

Bomin, the new part-time worker that Mr. Park hired recently, nods at them. “It’s alright. I’m kind of getting used to it.”

“Now, where's Donghyuck? I finally made the mochi bread that he begged for. Can’t let Renjun start eating, or he’ll finish it in 2 seconds,” Jaemin places the basket he bought after Renjun complained about aesthetics, filled with warm, freshly baked mochi breads.

“I think he’s in the storeroom. Been there for a bit, actually.”

“Look at him. Mr. Park gets a new guy and he’s already slacking off,” Jaemin nags, pulling Renjun out of his chair. The other scolds him for bothering him, but Jaemin continues dragging Renjun towards the back part of the store. “Come on, Jun.”

“Jaem, we could’ve just waited for him in front.”

“My bread’s growing cold by the second. Do you want to eat cold, hard bread?”

Renjun clicks his tongue. “So annoying.”

“I love you too,” Jaemin says, twisting the doorknob of the storeroom and pushing it open. “Hey, Hyuck-“

Jaemin literally yells when he sees Donghyuck pressed against the wall by a familiar figure, hair messy and two of his shirt buttons undone. 

“Oh my God! What in the world are you two doing? Seriously, you just had to fuck in the storeroom?”

“We weren’t fucking! Stop exaggerating!”

“Fucking, making out, it’s the same thing when it’s done in fucking public! Hyuck, this is literally unethical, you’re at work,” Jaemin has his eyes covered, with Renjun recording from behind him.

“Technically his shift finished a while ago-“

“Jen, baby, please shut up,” Donghyuck smooths down his shirt, buttoning up the ones undone by a very rough Jeno in the midst of their kissing session. “You’re never gonna let me live after this.”

“Trust me, I’ll be talking about this when I’m on my deathbed,” Renjun laughs, already walking to the front of the store to show off the video to Mark. “Babe, you’re not gonna believe what we caught Donghyuck doing-“

“Oh my God, Renjun, please for the love of God, stop what you’re doing,” Donghyuck pushes past Jaemin, who is still covering his eyes with his hands, leaving Jeno to fix himself in the storeroom. “I will hunt you down if the video gets out.”

“Is it safe yet? Is everyone full-dressed now?”

“We weren’t even undressed in the first place?” Jeno asks in confusion, running a hand through his red hair to tame the stray strands. “It’s safe, Jaem. You can open your eyes.”

Jaemin sighs, dropping his hands and blinking his eyes rapidly to adjust to the lighting. “Unethical. I can’t believe you, a professional even thought of doing that in such a place-“

“Hyung, is that a hickey?”

“JISUNG, NO!”)


End file.
